methionine

/mɪˈθʌɪəniːn/

//mɪˈθʌɪəniːn// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"methionine" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“methionine” is uncommon English (frequency #51,243 among 36,575 “M” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#51,243
frequency rank, English
36,575
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A sulphur-containing amino acid, C₅H₁₁NO₂S, in L- and D-forms.

Corpus desk

Index EN-methionine · methionine · English

methionine · rank #51,243 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #51,243
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 36,575
  • PHOTO-FINISH Megumi

Nearest frequency peer: Megumi (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “methionine”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “methionine” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026
Key facts for methionine
PropertyValue
Headwordmethionine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/mɪˈθʌɪəniːn/
Letters10
Frequency rank#51,243
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “methionine” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). methionine lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

methionine is uncommon English at frequency #51,243 among 36,575 “M” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /mɪˈθʌɪəniːn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for methionine, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From methyl + thio- + -n- + -ine. The correct English form is methionine, spelled M-E-T-H-I-O-N-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A sulphur-containing amino acid, C₅H₁₁NO₂S, in L- and D-forms.
  2. 2
    A sulphur-containing amino acid, C₅H₁₁NO₂S, in L- and D-forms.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how methionine appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The purpose was to make soya beans more healthy for those for whom they are a staple food by correcting soya beans' natural deficiency in a chemical called methionine.

Etymology

From methyl + thio- + -n- + -ine.

This word in other languages

metionina(Español)méthionine(Français)Methionin(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "methionine"?
"methionine" is spelled M-E-T-H-I-O-N-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /mɪˈθʌɪəniːn/.
What does "methionine" mean?
As a noun, "methionine" means: A sulphur-containing amino acid, C₅H₁₁NO₂S, in L- and D-forms.
How do you pronounce "methionine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "methionine" is /mɪˈθʌɪəniːn/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "methionine"?
From methyl + thio- + -n- + -ine. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "methionine", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

microbiota#51,245mirrorless#51,254Lackawanna#51,207Kuomintang#51,205
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list